RI on brink of AIDS epidemic: UNAIDS chief
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
UNAIDS executive director Peter Piot could be in any city in the world for World AIDS Day, which falls on Thursday.
But he has chosen to commemorate it here, in the capital of the world's fourth most populous nation, as it is "the new frontline of an AIDS epidemic".
Piot said he wanted to see attention focused on the Asian region, where one in five people is infected globally, compared to one in 10 new infections a decade ago.
Indonesia, he said, is on the brink of a major epidemic, and every layer of society should join the battle against HIV/AIDS.
"When I look at Indonesia from a global perspective, I would say that there's no doubt that Indonesia is in the early stages of an AIDS epidemic," Piot said on Monday after meeting with chief welfare minister Alwi Shihab.
The United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) chief said an expanded response to the epidemic was critical as infection rates were running high among injecting drug users, (IDUs) sex workers and their clients, and also among the heterosexual population in the easternmost province of Papua.
"We know from experience that once it starts like that, it's only a matter of time before HIV spreads outside these fairly defined populations," Piot said as he began his four-day visit to Indonesia.
"...all the elements are here for the rapid spread of HIV, so it's (up to us) to express concern, to highlight the opportunities that are there. The opportunities are enormous to really stop the epidemic, to nip it in the bud."
Ministry of Health data for September shows there are 8,251 people living with HIV/AIDS in the country. International agencies, however, say 90,000 to 130,000 people could be HIV- positive while some local experts say it is more like 180,000 to 250,000 people.
The major force driving the epidemic here is injecting drug use.
Alwi said there are at least 600,000 IDUs throughout the country, half of whom are believed to be HIV-positive.
Piot said that while President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had expressed clear commitment to fighting AIDS, the same level of commitment was needed from all levels of society.
"We know from experience that's how you make progress in AIDS."
Discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS and the stigma attached to the virus have hampered efforts to prevent its spread.
The promotion of condom use as well as harm reduction strategies, which includes providing sterile disposable needles and disinfectants as well as providing heroin substitutes, are still controversial and have not received full support.
Alwi said his office had talked to religious leaders to emphasize the disastrous consequences of not promoting the use of condoms.
"We are giving the other perspective of religious understanding. Under Islamic law, it is also necessary to prevent death, and maintaining life is the responsibility of all individual Muslims," said the minister who is also a Muslim scholar.
He said representatives of regional legislative councils from all 33 provinces would meet in Jakarta on Friday to discuss HIV/AIDS-related issues, particularly the budget allocation.
Last year, the government promised to raise its spending on subsidizing drugs for HIV/AIDS patients to Rp 24 billion (US$2.49 million), up from Rp 10 billion in 2003.
However, AIDS activists said that many people living with the virus had not been able to get affordable access to the drugs.